Cheap but of higher quality than many other "entry-level" AR's out there, the Smith and Wesson M&P 15 Sport II is a really good choice for anyone looking to buy their first AR-15, and probably among the best overall.
Table of contents
Introduction
As we've probably said before, the AR-15 is, without a doubt, the most popular rifle in the United States, and rifles with this design are the most-produced firearms in the 5.56/.223 caliber on earth.
Lightweight, easy to handle, surprisingly accurate and with very low recoil, they appeal to an enormous variety of customers from the military and police to common civilians- whether for hunting, home defense, or even just for the fun of it (not least of all because these are very fun rifles to shoot).
With such popularity, it's no wonder there are so many AR-15 clones out there (Palmetto State Armory lists AR-15 offerings from around 300 manufacturers on their website alone at the time of this writing).
However, not all AR's are created equal- the very down-to-earth Smith and Wesson M&P Sport II, however, punches well above its weight.
Like many other "budget" AR's, it doesn't do anything particularly special or unique, but it does what it's meant to do remarkably well for an affordable price and won't leave you incurring debts with anyone.
This week, after a long hiatus for the holidays, we will be reviewing this gun in its entirety- the good, and the bad.
Hands-on experience (function, features, shooting and more)
First impressions
It may or may not surprise you to learn that the Smith and Wesson M&P 15 II is one of the more common AR-15 clones out there- and here, at least, you can readily find them at any decent-sized gun store in most of the 50 states.
It's no different it it's feel than any other run-of-the-mill AR-15- light and fairly evenly propositioned from weight standpoint with all the standard controls and everything (paddle bolt catch/release, "T" rear charging handle, forward assist etc.), but it does have one feature that will immediately stand out- that barrel.
This offers a good segue into our next section...
Controls and external features
We mentioned the barrel.
It's thick- noticeably thicker than other AR's and yet it doesn't seem to add hardly any weight at all to the front of the gun. Smith and Wesson (probably) make the barrel thicker to accommodate the increased rigors of sport shooting, hence its name- and will explain more on this later, but trust me, the increased barrel thickness is definitely a plus.
One other thing that the M&P Sport II seems to do well- and I'm not sure if this is intended or not- is "break in" surprisingly well. I remember picking one up for the first time and everything from the mag release to bolt manipulation and even flipping the safety felt nice and buttery. To my mild shock, the guy behind the counter told me not only had that specific gun never been fired, but they hadn't lubed it up anywhere or anything- it was slick and easy to use right out of the box, and that's not something you get with many AR's in my experience right off the bat.
All in all, though, it's still pretty much just a standard, barebones AR. Even if you find AR's a bit tricker to handle than, say, an AK, you could learn the ins and outs fairly quickly, and the M&P Sport II certainly won't give you any additional trouble in that area.
Shooting it
This is, for me at least, one of the best parts about this gun.
Even for an AR-15, it's a grand time to shoot.
Remember that thick barrel? Well, in addition to feeling like it's not even adding an ounce of weight onto the front of the gun, it dissipates the heat really well- this has two main benefits- for one, it'll greatly increase the time it takes for the handguard to get hot and unpleasant to hold, and secondly, it will give the barrel not only a longer life but greater accuracy. It won't be a pea shooter given its stock trigger which, while it may be good enough for the average joe, won't be winning you any competitions.
It's still a very enjoyable weapon to shoot- on my last trip to the range I head too whenever I get the chance, I put nearly 600 rounds through the gun without cleaning it or even spraying lube in it. It had 2 malfunctions with crappy steel-cased ammo from Tula, but other than that the brass Fiocchi, Winchester and Remington ammunition I put through it (along with some green tip M855 I had for a while but had never used) all functioned fine, and I had no additional problems.
Additionally, while I'm generally unable to take rifles out to really long ranges because I live in a densely populated metro area of the Southeastern U.S and no nearby range goes past 100 yards or so, online reports by others who can seem to suggest this rifle is "minute of man" (i.e. accurate enough to hit a man-sized target) with even cheap ammo ammunition out to a few hundred yards, so if you want to use just the rifle as it comes out of the box for hunting anything larger than a groundhog, you should do well, especially with match loads.
I should also mention that the M&P 15 sport II has a 1:9 barrel twist (most AR's have either 1:9 or 1:7 twist rates, but the latter appears to be more common), so choose your loads based on that if you're planning on doing anything precise with it. Regardless of what you pick, however, nothing I've read or experienced suggests the stock M&P 15 Sport II is going to be a hairsplitter that can shoot buttons off a shirt. This is all fairly typical for an AR, though, and for one this cheap, that's generally about the most you can expect.
Pros and cons
Pros
Offers pretty much everything you could need in an AR for a reasonably affordable price (usually around 800 USD at the time of this writing)- including superb reliability and ease of handling
Heavier barrel offers increased heat resistance as well as a notable increase in accuracy and barrel life. Additionally, the perceived weight increase is minimal
Covered by a pretty good lifetime warranty by Smith and Wesson
Cons
It's still fairly average as far as AR's go- while this is good enough for most people, most niche users might want something more out of an AR than rifles like the M&P Sport II can offer out of the box. The trigger is particularly unremarkable (but not exactly horrible)
Final thoughts
An option for good AR for an affordable price is something that anyone who needs a rifle deserves, especially as things become more and more expensive. The Smith and Wesson M&P Sport II scratches that itch, and while it's not pushing the AR platform to the max or anything, it's still definitely a bargain deal and well worth the price of only 800 USD.
It does all the basics as well as you could hope- it's reliable, accurate enough for most uses, and neither difficult to handle nor unpleasant to shoot, and, as an added bonus, does all this better than most other AR's in its price range.
I'd definitely recommend this for first time AR buyers, and if you can grow to like the AR-15 platform, you'll frow to like the Smith and Wesson M&P Sport II just the same.
Gun stats
Caliber | .223 Remington/5.56 NATO |
Action | Semi-automatic (direct impingement) |
Barrel length | 16 inches |
Overall length | 35 inches |
Weight | 6.45 pounds |
Magazine capacity | 30 rounds (standard) |